If you coordinate LTL shipping, then you should already be aware of the industry-wide changes to the National Motor Freight Classification that went into effect on August 5th.
If not, then read on – these changes may have a significant impact on your business!
Less-than-truckload transportation has many methods for calculating its rates. Much of the time, this results in increased prices as a result of fees for extra services, accessorial charges, and other additional services along those lines. On top of these less-than-truckload rate increases as a result of extras, there’s a very practical reason for increasing fees: the NMFC numbers for client shipments.
The NMFC is a body of information published and maintained by the National Motor Freight Traffic Association (NMFTA), which in essence are motor carriers themselves. Being motor carriers themselves, they’re aware of the pressures and needs of other motor carriers, as well as the realities of managing logistics.
This is highlighted in their description: “The National Motor Freight Traffic Association (NMFTA) is a nonprofit membership organization headquartered in Alexandria, VA. Its members are motor carriers operating in interstate, intrastate, and foreign commerce. NMFTA’s mission is to “promote, advance, and improve the welfare and interests of the motor carrier industry and the motor carriers operating in commerce, both domestically and/or internationally.”
To that end, effective as of August 5th, 2017, the group made some significant changes to the NMFC, particularly to the density-based NMFC numbers.
For 132 different density-based NMFC item numbers, products that have a density between 4 – 6 pounds per cubic foot will be changing from class 150 to class 175.
Understandably, this change will dramatically impact any LTL freight companies or clients who deal with products in this range. Even if you don’t normally handle products in that range, the ripple effect of available carriers, rates, and other aspects that impact the industry may eventually reach your main client base as well. Because this change is a significant one, it’s worth reviewing with your sales and operations teams to be sure they’re up to date on the correct classification (and rates) for shipments affected by the change. Additionally, your logistics managers need to be aware of the changes for practical purposes, such as ensuring your shipments are accurately labeled to prevent any fines or fees as a result.
Diversified Transportation Services has over 27 years of experience in helping clients manage their transportation programs, supply chain, or no-obligation historical cost analysis. We place a great emphasis on consulting with our clients to identify and implement cost containment measures and we can help you to mitigate these upcoming changes. We love data and utilize historical data to help meet our clients' needs.
Please contact your sales representative or our Corporate Office at 310-521-1200 to schedule a time to review these changes and assess how they are likely to impact your business. Need less-than-truckload rates? Call or email us at dispatch@dtsone.com for a prompt quote. DTS has you covered!
Whether you're a company looking to improve one facet of your supply chain, your entire supply chain, or simply looking for a transportation and logistics consultation, we can help.
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